As a Fendt owner for more than 10 years, Jerry Ryerson, who farms near Ames, Iowa, says there are only two things wrong with Fendt tractors.
“First, if you buy one, you’re going to want another one within a year,” he says with a grin. “The other is if you have any hired help, you won’t get much chance to
drive it yourself.”
On a more serious note, however, Ryerson says he loves everything about the two Fendt tractors he presently owns. Having already owned and traded an 818, an 820 and a 716, which was his very first Fendt, his current lineup includes a Model 412, which he describes as one of only a handful in the United States, and a Model 824. The latter serves as his planter and tillage tractor, while the 412 — equipped with a Fendt loader and a 3-point mounted backhoe — serves as a utility tractor.

“I also use the 824 as a transport vehicle, pulling two 760-bushel wagons behind it, in place of a truck,” he continues. “Even though I’m hauling grain up to five miles, I can still keep ahead of an 8-row combine.” Ryerson says there are plenty of features that make his largest Fendt the ideal transport vehicle, not the least of them being the 32-mph road speed. “With the Vario transmission and the ABS braking, stopping and starting are just as smooth as can be,” he relates. “Plus, with the reactive steering and the Fendt Stability Control system, I can run wide open and not have a bit of sway with the wagons.”

Of course, Ryerson is just as happy with the tractor in the field. In fact, he says he covered 110 acres with a 20-foot soil aerator after corn harvest and used just 7/10th of a gallon of diesel per acre. He’s impressed, too, with all the details Fendt thought of, like a built-in air compressor, enough hydraulic pressure to lift the rear of the tractor so he can install or remove the duals, and the touch screen multifunction Varioterminal that controls everything from one screen.

“I just love the TI (teach in) feature in the headland management program,” he says. “I can write and edit while I’m running in the field. I even figured out how to tie the autosteer into the program so it reengages after the turn. “Once you drive a Fendt, you never want to drive anything but a Fendt,” he concludes. “But I’m not the only one that thinks that way. I’ve had people ride with me and drive it, only to comment, ‘Why would anybody want to buy anything else?’”